


The Distant Sound of Drums

by lir1983



Category: Doctor Who, Doctor Who & Related Fandoms
Genre: Academy Era, Angst, Coming of Age, Doctor Who: Academy Era, Drama, Intrigue, Introspection, Koschei - Freeform, M/M, Romance, Slash, Theta Sigma - Freeform, Violence, explicit content, lots of other stuff that I'll add as I write
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-12-14
Updated: 2015-12-14
Packaged: 2018-05-06 17:16:05
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,567
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5425280
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lir1983/pseuds/lir1983
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"Some would be inspired, some would run away, and some would go mad." Gallifrey's future hangs in the balance, and two children must cling to each other in order to survive. And as one slowly slips into madness, in order to save him the other must fight the almost overwhelming urge to run. Koschei/Theta Sigma</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Distant Sound of Drums

**Author's Note:**

> This is very much a work in progress. Although I have a rough outline for it in my mind, I have no idea how long it's going to end up. I'll try to update as often as I can, but I'm currently working on another project and this one is secondary to it.
> 
> This was inspired mostly by a number of fics I've read, but also by scenes with Ten and Simm!Master, and Twelve and Missy. It was also slightly inspired by some of the New Adventures novels (from which I've borrowed some places, characters and ideas) and to a much lesser extent some of the Big Finish stories, since I've only listened to a couple of them.
> 
> A couple of notes: Theta and Koschei are only four years old in this chapter, but they speak and act a little older than human children do at that age. In my head, since they are Gallifreyan, they are more advanced than humans would be, so that's how I wrote them. Also, for the purposes of this story, "looming" is just a very advanced form of genetic engineering, and doesn't imply creation outside a womb.
> 
> And although the first couple of chapters will essentially be "G" rated, my plan is to go dark.

**The Distant Sound of Drums**

_Koschei had always known him._

_Well, that wasn’t entirely correct; after all, they weren’t womb mates. Far from it. But Koschei’s first memory wasn’t of his mother, the Lady Marne, that loving yet distance presence who held him as an infant, nor of his father, Lord Teladrel, the strict yet cheerful man whom he also always knew loved him. It wasn’t of his nurse Rhodella, the kindly, pleasant-faced woman who cared for him, fed him, changed his nappies when he messed himself and bathed him when he came in from outside covered in the dark red Gallifreyan mud. It was not of his tutor Dante, the tall, thin man with a dour face that taught him to read circular Gallifreyan and how to plot the course of everything from electrons to superclusters of galaxies. It wasn’t even the enormous plush LaKoshka – a toy version of an aggressive form of Gallifreyan bear – that stood guarding the entrance to his chambers._

_No, it was the pale boy with the shock of unruly dark hair and soulful eyes sitting on a bench in the Great Hall of his father’s estate._

_Despite there being a time before they met, in his conscious memory Koschei’d always known Theta, had always felt the younger boy to be a part of him. The better part. Theta was the yang to his yin, the light that poured itself into his darkened soul. And just like the Chinese philosophy (a philosophy that originated on Gallifrey, as so many did), like the twin suns of the constellation of Kasterborous, they were two halves of a whole, holding a portion of the other within themselves, ever circling one another until it was impossible to tell where one ended and the other began. And Koschei knew he’d always feel the inexplicable, undeniable, inevitable pull of the other that connected them, linked them together for eternity._

_They’d started as the closest of friends, and then became more, much more, before becoming mortal enemies. And as to how they’d end, even the seers in the Citadel, even the ghosts inhabiting the Matrix couldn’t predict. But Koschei knew that however it ended, whether they ended as lovers or enemies or something in between, they would be together. It was as inescapable as a fixed point in time, as inevitable as the movement of the stars and the planets was by the rotation of the universe._

_They’d met during the spring of his fourth year. He remembered that clearly. It was that time of year when the weather was warm and the trees were in bud, the grass had begun to grow and the sarlain and arkytior were not yet in full bloom._

_There was something appropriate about it. Spring was the time of all beginnings, and it was the time when his soul’s mate first came into his life._

*****

Koschei tore into the Great Hall, running flat out as only a four year old can, as if he was being chased by a Toclafane. He loved to run, and the Great Hall was perfect for it. It stretched the length of the old manor of the House of Oakdown, front to back fifty yards, and was a third as wide as it was long. Its wood-planked floor – polished to a sheen you could see yourself in – was perfect for running, particularly when it was raining out as it was now.

In fact, it was absolutely pouring outside, buckets of water falling from the sky, something that rarely if ever happened in the grasslands of Wild Endeavor, not even in spring. Koschei had never seen a storm like that before, and the excitement of something new happening – combined with the chocolate he had nicked from his nurse’s secret stash behind the bust of Omega in the library – had him bursting with energy. Energy currently being expended by running through the halls of his home and generally creating a nuisance of himself. Something that even at the age of four gave him great satisfaction.

He had run the full length of the Hall and was on his way back when he spotted a small shape sitting on one of the benches that lined one wall. It was another child, a boy who appeared to be his own age. 

He stopped short and frowned.

His first thought was of the strangeness of the situation. Koschei was an only child, and rarely had contact with children other than the ones belonging to the servants. And never within his own home.

He felt another wave of excitement. The day was filled with new things. First there was the rain, and now there was a new boy to play with. 

That thought was quickly replaced by outrage at the other’s presence without his expressed permission, at the intrusion of a strange child into Koschei’s own personal domain.

“Who are you?” he demanded with all the arrogance and authority of the sole heir to one of the great Houses of Gallifrey. “What are you doing here?”

“I’m, uh, Th… Th… Theta,” the boy stuttered. He swallowed nervously, making his Adam’s apple bob up and down. “My name’s Theta.”

“Don’t be stupid. That’s not a name,” Koschei said contemptuously. “That’s a classification symbol.”

The other boy, Theta apparently, looked away. He seemed embarrassed, and for a moment, for the teeniest fraction of a second Koschei was embarrassed for him. It was an odd feeling, something he’d never felt before, but before he could catalogue it, it was gone and had been replaced by impatience. 

Impatience was something he was extremely familiar with.

“So?” he prompted.

“So… what?” Theta asked.

Koschei rolled his eyes. “So… what are you doing here?”

Before Theta could answer, a door opposite them opened and three people emerged: Koschei's father and two others, a man that appeared to be a similar age to his father, although shorter and thinner, and a boy who looked like a miniature version of him. Undoubtedly his son, he thought. Oddly, his father was dressed in the semi-formal robes that identified him as one of the Lords of Time, rather than the jumper and trousers he typically wore at home. The other man was similarly dressed, but in green and silver rather than the maroon and gold his father wore. The boy, tall, thin and blond, appeared a few years older than Koschei himself. 

“Don’t worry, Ulysses,” his father was saying. Although he wasn’t speaking loudly, his voice echoed through the hall. “We’ll take care of him. And once I formally sponsor him, Braxiatel will be at the Academy. He’ll be able to stay here between terms. He’ll help Theta adjust.” His father clasped the boy on the shoulder. “Won’t you, Brax?”

Braxiatel nodded. Koschei wasn’t particularly good at reading emotions, but to his eyes the older boy looked distinctly uncomfortable. “Yes, sir,” he murmured.

“Thank you, Teladrel,” Ulysses said.

“Think nothing of it,” his father answered. His voice dropped to just above a whisper, and Koschei had to strain to hear him. “What you’re doing is vital to Gallifrey’s future. As far as me and my House, we will do what we can to help.”

After a moment Ulysses gave him a sharp nod. 

Koschei stared hard at the scene in front of him, trying to make sense of it. He knew it was important, far more so than he knew his young mind could even imagine, and he tucked into the back of his mind for safekeeping. He had an excellent memory – old Dante always said so – at least when he applied it, and this he knew was worth remembering.

His father began to turn in his direction, and he quickly looked around himself for a place to hide. He didn’t want to be caught eavesdropping, but he also didn’t want to stop.

He was caught anyway.

His father raised an eyebrow when he spotted the two boys. Then he grinned.

“Ah, Koschei, I see you’ve already met Theta,” he said, nodding approvingly. “Good. Very good. You can show him around. He’ll be staying with us for a while.”

Koschei stared at his father in shock for a moment before turning back to Theta. The other boy wouldn’t meet his eyes. 

He turned back to his father. “What do you mean he’s staying here? What for?”

“Koschi,” his father said slowly in a low, firm voice. “Take Theta upstairs. He is to have the chambers next to yours. His things should already be in them by now.”

“Next to mine? But those are Rhodella’s!” he protested.

Teladrel shot him a look of such anger and disapproval that it felt like a slap. “My son, you forget your place. It is not for you to question the actions of adults. Show Theta around and then take him upstairs.” 

Teladrel had not raised his voice, but he hadn’t needed to. His father had the ability to influence others by merely speaking, and Koschei felt the reinforcement of his father’s will carried through the words. He found himself halfway down the hall before he even realized he was obeying. 

He turned back to tell Theta to follow him, only to find the boy standing behind him. His eyes were huge.

“Your dad’s a bit scary,” he said in a low voice.

Koschei agreed, but he couldn’t let Theta know that. “Nah,” he said with false bravado as they walked to the end of the hall. “He’s a pussycat.”

Theta glanced back over his shoulder. “More like a Bengal tiger,” he muttered.

*****

After what was ostensibly a tour of the house, but was really just a quick stop in the kitchen for biscuits, the boys ended up at what was now Theta’s bedroom.

The door stood open and the room appeared vacant, having already been emptied of Rhodella’s belongings.

“Where’s all your stuff?” Koschei asked as they entered the room.

“What do you mean?” Theta asked.

“I mean, if you’re staying here, where’s all your stuff? Your clothes, your toys… Didn’t you bring anything with you?”

“I don’t know what you mean,” Theta told him. He gestured at the closet. A few garments – some shirts, a couple of pairs of trousers – hung on hangers at one end, and a dilapidated carpet bag lay on the floor under them. “My clothes are right there. And my books are on the shelf.” 

He pointed towards the tall bookcase on the far wall. Only hours earlier it had been filled with figurines belonging to Koschei’s nurse, but now perhaps a dozen books were piled there. They took up only a fraction of a single shelf. The rest of the bookcase was empty.

Theta walked over to the closet and pulled something brown and fuzzy out of the bag. Hugging it to his chest, he crossed the room and climbed up on the bed. Koschei sat down next to him.

“What is that?” he asked. 

“It’s my teddy bear,” Theta answered. “My daddy got it on Earth for me.”

Koschei’s brow furrowed in puzzlement. He knew the names of all the stars in the constellation of Kasterborous as well as those of every constellation within a thousand lightyears from Gallifrey. And all the planets circling them. But he’d never heard of Earth.

“Where’s Earth?” he asked.

“Dunno. Pretty far away, I guess. ‘S why I have to come stay here, because Daddy’s taking Mummy back to Earth.” Theta’s eyes grew round and he clapped a hand over his mouth. “That’s a secret. You can’t tell anybody.”

Koschei thought about making a clever remark, about how there was no one to tell, maybe, or how no one would care anyway, but he took one look at the pleading expression on Theta’s face and didn’t.

“I promise,” he said instead.

A gentle knock on the door made them turn their heads. In the doorway stood a tall woman, her dark hair braided and piled high on her head in a complicated style. She wore a full length pale blue gown made of a soft material that seemed to float around her. 

She was the most beautiful person Koschei had ever seen. 

Behind her stood the man from the Great Hall, a solemn expression on his face, and Koschei realized he was Theta’s father.

“Mummy!” Theta cried. He dropped his teddy bear on the bed and ran to her. She knelt down and gathered him into a huge hug. 

“Mummy, don’t go. Please don’t go,” he pleaded.

“Theta, we talked about this,” she told him. “I have to go back. I have no choice.”

“Then take me with you! Please? I promise I’ll be good.”

“I wish I could, sweetheart. But you have to stay here.” She looked at him sadly. “I would take you if I could.” She smiled at him, and even Koschei could tell it was forced. “But you’re going to have great fun here, and in a few years you’ll go to the Academy with Braxiatel…”

“I don’t want to go to the Academy!”

“In a few years you’ll go to the Academy with Braxiatel,” she repeated firmly. “And before you know it, we’ll see each other again.”

Theta sniffed loudly. “Promise?”

“I promise,” she said gently.

He wrapped his arms around her neck and she held him tight. After several long moments, she pulled away and cupped his face in her hand.

“Now be a good boy and obey Lord Teladrel and Lady Marne,” she said. She adjusted his collar and then brushed his fringe out of his eyes. “And do your lessons.” She kissed his forehead. “I love you, Theta. Always, always remember that.”

“I love you too, Mummy.”

She stood, and Theta’s father pulled him in for a hug. He lifted him high off the floor, leaving Theta’s feet dangling, before setting him back down.

“Make us proud, son,” he said.

“Yes, sir.”

After his parents left, Theta walked slowly back to the bed and climbed up on it. But it wasn’t until he sat down with his back to the headboard and buried his face in his hands that he began to cry. As he sobbed, he rocked back and forth.

Koschei didn’t know what to do. Theta's tears scared him. The only time he ever cried like that was when he fell and hurt himself. Then Rhodella gave him a plaster and a sweet and hugged him. 

Theta hadn't fallen, but he was definitely hurt.

Thinking that maybe Rhodella could help now, he asked, “Do you want my nurse? She makes me feel better.” 

Without looking up Theta shook his head.

Koschei looked around the room, searching for something, anything to make Theta stop crying. Almost immediately his eyes fell on Theta's cast off teddy bear. He picked it up and offered it to him.

Theta took it and buried his face in its soft fur. “Thank you.” Since his face was currently buried in the stomach of the bear, the words sounded muffled.

Not knowing what else to do, Koschei crawled up the bed and sat down next to him. He put his arm around the smaller boy’s shoulders in an effort to comfort him. It seemed to work because Theta began to relax. Over time his sobs faded. Eventually he lifted his head and set the bear on his lap.

And then Theta silently leaned into him and rested his head on Koschei’s shoulder.


End file.
